Bread storage

Yikes, my cultural knowledge is sadly lacking. What the heck is "mountain " bread ?
I suspect that Rye bread will last longer, but someone is sure to contradict me :))

Hi Carlin

The death of bread is controlled by two key factors - the oxygen in the loaf and the amount of preservatives in it.

Normally we buy/make bread without preservatives and it only lasts a couple of days non-forzen.

For our trip up the Hay , we did our usual thing of buying standard supermarket packaged bread which has preservatives.

We then suck air out of the plastic bag until it starts to collapse around the slices and then tie of the end.
This significantly reduces the oxygen content.

With this approach , this bread will easily last a week kept out of the sun.

We use Helgas Soy and Linseed, put 2 loaves of it into a tin cake container (it keeps the light out) and it lasts 2 weeks on a winter desert trip.

Wrapping sliced bread in its plastic bag in newspaper does work, though there may be a few spots of mould after 10 days or so. Why stick to just sliced bread. You could try a damper, bake your own bread or make a pasta or rice salad. The isolation along the Hay River track will inspire you to be creative!

Spent 10 days at and around Batton Hill a couple of years ago - lunch every day was mountain bread, which really did become monotonous.

Cheers,

Val

Hmmmm.. Mountain bread! or flat bread! it's just flour water and salt.
No wonder you get over it pretty quickly. Think I would get some crusketts SAO biscuits and the like to mix it up a bit. Or as said make some damper for more taste.

Hi Carlin,
Whole grain bread also stays a bit fresher as the moistness in the grains seems to help. If you can find a country baker eg., Cunnamulla and buy the big hi top uncut loaves they also last for a couple of weeks wrapped in grease proof paper and stored in a clean pillow case. Depends on how many you intend to feed, its a bit awkward to carry half a dozen loaves. Vita wheats are fairly robust and taste great with jam, cheese, vegemite, tomato,or tinned ham or fish. Very versatile.
Cheers, Sally

Carlin, in Birdsville you can buy frozen sliced bread - white, brown, grain.
At the Birdsville Bakery you can buy fresh bread, depending on the mood of Dusty the Baker (I am quite serious) but don't expect to be able to buy soy/linseed or rye - and in most cases, you buy what he gives you. (He's quite nice, if a little eccentric).
The last reply is a good idea - I usually make my own bread - but if travelling in the right times and places I prefer to buy the old high top married loaf (as they used to call them) from an old fashioned baker not one of the new bread shops (a little plug here for the hole-in-the-wall bakery at Mitchell, Q - absolutely brilliant and bakes gluten free everything on Thursdays). Now, coming from Gladstone -are you going to Longreach - good bakery there.Quilpie also has a good bakery where, if early enough or if you order, you could get high topped loaves (not sliced keeps better). The frozen sliced bread in Birdsville comes from Quilpie Bakery (at Shell AUto and Mobil - both sell it).
Best bread of all is Heinemanns Bakery in Charleville - even the sliced keeps well out in the desert. I don't like to keep bread in the bags they come in - particularly in the car as they tend to sweat. Wrap in old tea towel or linen cloth - don't take extra containers, such a pain.
Have fun - don't stress about the bread or anything else - you won't be out there that long and never heard of anyone dying of starvation on a camping trip, strange that - most people put on weight. (Don't forget the chocolate - for any emergency whatever).

Thanks everyone. My 2 toddlers love their bread and I know it fills them up and keeps them happy! I am going to try the suck the air out with multigrain woolworths bread. Agree???